Khirbet Badd ‘Isa An archaeological site now known as
Khirbet Badd 'Isa was discovered during a salvage dig by the archaeology department of the Civil Administration in Modi'in Illit in 1994. The excavations eventually revealed what is believed to have been a large Jewish village from the
Second Temple period with a public structure in the center, which probably served as a
synagogue, at least three
ritual baths, private homes (some built with
Herodian blocks), an oil press, warehouses, and a collection of 145 Roman coins from the first century CE. Archaeological data indicate that the village was established during the
Hellenistic period and existed up until the
First Jewish–Roman War ( CE). It was resettled by Jews who later took part in the
Bar Kokhba revolt ( CE). The site was destroyed during the revolt and remained uninhabited up until the third century. This settlement gap may mark the end of the Jewish settlement and the arrival of a new population at the area. The excavations at the site were first protested by the Haredi community, but after the discovery Khirbet Badd ‘Isa was designated "a heritage site for the Haredi public" in 2011, and the Israeli government contributed NIS 3 million to develop the site, with another NIS 1 million reportedly coming from the Civil Administration. According to Mod'in Illit's Mayor Yaakov Gutterman of the
Degel HaTorah party, the site "will operate according to the doctrines of our forefathers, according to the Jewish historical sources presented by the Bible, the Gemara and ancient Jewish sages only [and] will be open only to the Haredi public, which will keep it a proper place for them to visit and connect to their Jewish roots, without the distortions and disruptions of other places, where there is fear of hearing false opinions."
Ḥorvat Abu a-Danin Another archeological site called
Khirbet Abu ad-Danin is located on the northern slope of Nahal Modi'im, directly south of the city's built-up area. Finkelstein surveyed the site in the 1980s, and suggested that a public building might be located in the middle of the site. In 2004 and 2005, excavations were conducted, and uncovered the ruins of a rural Jewish village from the late Second Temple period. Archeological findings indicate that the community was founded in the second century BCE, had its apex in the first centuries BCE and CE, and ceased to exist following the
Bar Kokhba revolt. The site underwent some minor resettlement in the late Roman and Byzantine eras. ==Demographics==